The Right Person
by Casey Belllhamp
Summary: Set pretty much right after the events of Operation Mongoose. Swanqueen, even though it may not seem so at first. Emma is trying to deal with the new darkness affecting her and who better to help out than Regina?
1. Chapter 1

Pretty much my first serious fanfic, all comments/criticism welcome

* * *

"David, what are we going to do?" Snow opens the door to her apartment and lets in the three people that had followed her. David frowns. It had been almost half an hour since Emma absorbed the Darkness to save Regina and disappeared.

"I'm not sure there is much we can do right now." He looks at Regina, still visibly shaken from the attack. Henry has his arm around her and is guiding her into the apartment. She didn't even protest when he had said she needed to lie down for a bit. "We need to find Merlin. But we don't have a way of doing that with our most powerful magic users out of the game."

Snow hangs up her coat and places her bag on the kitchen counter. "Once Regina is feeling better she can help us find a spell or something to summon him. If Emma was here, maybe she could help, but she hasn't been answering my calls and there's no way of finding her if she doesn't want to be found." As she turns around, her elbow knocks her bag over and there's a loud sound of something metal falling onto the floor.

David and Snow stare at the dagger until neither of them can look at it anymore. They meet each other's eyes and the knowledge of what to do is already written there.

"I can't do it, David. Do we really want to… to _summon_ our daughter? What if she's a completely different person now? What if she's… dangerous?"

"She won't be." David says with such certainty that Snow almost believes him. "And so what if she has changed a bit? Rumpelstiltskin only went so dark because he wouldn't let love into his life. We just have to be there and support her through this until we can figure out a way to fix it. As for the danger… Well, we'll have the dagger, we can stop her from doing anything that she would regret later."

David reaches down and picks up the dagger, but Snow stops his arm. "No, I'll call her." David nods, knowing it's something she feels she has to do.

Snow holds the dagger in front of her, the name turned away from her chest so she doesn't have to look at it. She takes a deep breath to steady herself and closes her eyes. "Emma Swan, I summon thee."

The words seem to echo, and the only sounds left are the soft voices coming from the other room where Regina and Henry are oblivious to what is going on. Snow opens her eyes and gasps.

"Emma." David breathes in relief at the sight of the woman who has magically appeared in front of them. Emma turns, confused. Her hair is slightly messy, with a couple leaves still in it from outside. The second she sees her parents she smiles in relief.

"Oh my god! Emma! Are you okay?" Snow rushes in without a pause, pulling Emma into a tight hug. All her concerns about change forgotten in the moment.

"Yeah," Emma says, sounding slightly disoriented, "I was just… in the woods." She looks down at the object in her mother's hand. "And apparently I can be summoned by a dagger now, so that will take some getting used to, but otherwise I think I'm fine. Crisis averted."

"But… you feel like yourself?" Snow asks, pulling away from the hug with concern.

Emma gives a half shrug. "I feel… mostly the same? I think it might have something to do with being the saviour. My light magic is cancelling out the dark somehow."

"I'm glad you're all right," Snow says gently, before smacking Emma on the shoulder very hard. "Now what the hell were you thinking?!"

"Ouch!" Emma winches and pulls back.

David steps forward swiftly, "Snow, really?"

"Yes, really! Emma, did you even think about how much pain we would all be in if you got hurt? Or what if you hurt somebody else? Did you really think sacrificing yourself was a good plan?"

Emma frowns, "Well, I-" she trails off, seemingly unable to respond.

"Snow, would you stop yelling at her? I thought we talked about being supportive…"

Emma smiles. "Thank you, dad… I-"

David cuts in, "but I agree with your mother." He puts his hand on Emma's shoulder. "You're the saviour, and the town can't afford to lose you. But more importantly, you're our daughter, and we can't lose you either."

Emma is about to finally reply when Regina slowly enters the room, looking worn out, and with Henry at her side. She has a pair of Snow's slippers on and a blanket wrapped around her shoulders. She straightens in shock seeing Emma, letting the blanket fall to the ground.

"What's going on?" Henry asks, "We heard…" He trails off as Snow and David part to reveal Emma. "Mom!" Henry runs to Emma's side, about to wrap his arms around her before he hesitates. He looks at the dagger in Snow's hands then back to Emma. "Uh, how are you? You don't… feel like killing anybody, right?"

Emma shakes her head frantically. "Of course not. I'm fine, kid." Henry smiles and pulls her into a hug. She looks up at the woman across from her. "Regina, how are you? The darkness didn't do any damage, right? I got to it in time?" Concern is evident in every word.

She smiles slightly. "I'm just… a little worn out. It was a powerful attack, but I'm _very_ practiced at fighting against darkness." She too looks at the dagger, and frowns. "Now, want to tell me what the hell were you thinking? Sacrificing yourself for me? How idiotic can you get, Swan?"

"Great." Emma says, "Not you too."

"Yes, me too. And if your parents agree with me, you know there's truth to it."

Emma steps back from Henry so she can address the whole room. "Look, I know it may not have been my best plan, but come on! It was Regina. It's not like I was just going to let the darkness take away everything she worked for." She looks at her, "You may not agree with me, but you deserve your happiness, and I don't regret what I did."

Regina sighs and regrets her harsh tone earlier. "I… I didn't mean to sound ungrateful. I am, truly. I'm not sure I could survive the same road back to this point from where I was before. Thank you."

"See?" Emma grins. "I told you we were friends."

Regina rolls her eyes, but smiles, and David and Snow smile as well.

"By the way, where's Hook and Robin?" Emma asks.

"Out looking for you." Snow says, "We didn't think of using the dagger to summon you until just a few minutes ago."

"Robin too?" Emma asks.

Regina nods. "Yes, he said he owes you a couple after you saved me."

"Alright, I'm just going to call Hook and let him know I'm alright, then we can get Robin back here to help take care of _you_." Emma says the last part with a pointed look at Regina, who seems in danger of falling asleep where she stands.

Emma pulls out her phone and Henry gives her a one armed hug before helping Regina to a stool by the island in Snow's kitchen.

Hook's phone rings a couple times before the voicemail picks up. It's Emma's voice. "Just say your name."

"But why? This is nonsense." Says the electronic voice of Hook.

Emma speaks again, "Ugh, fine. This is Killian's phone, he can't pick up right now, and I wouldn't bother leaving a message because he's an old man that doesn't understand technology." The voice breaks off with giggles and Emma smiles, remembering that Hook had quieted her with a kiss. She hangs up without leaving a message.

"Can't reach Hook," Emma calls out to the rest of the room. "Hopefully they aren't out too long." She approaches the kitchen and sees Snow has made hot cocoa for everybody. Even Regina has one in front of her and is sipping out of it with a disinterested look on her face. Henry has somehow managed to get the blanket back over her, and even with the sharp blouse she still has on, it's the softest Emma has ever seen her.

Snow pushes a mug towards Emma and they all sit in silence for a few beats, the warm smell of cocoa and cinnamon enveloping them.

"So," Emma begins, placing an arm around Henry's shoulders, "How's my author doing?"

"I'm-" Henry's voice breaks and he coughs. "-fine." He finishes in a normal voice. "I uh, I broke the quill. I didn't want to be tempted."

"That's really big of you, Henry." Snow says, trying to not fall into her teacher voice. "We can't know if that was the best decision, because we don't know anything about being the author. But we support you." The others all nod.

"Thanks, Grandma." Henry says, smiling. "It's just, I cut my thumb on the edge afterwards. Do you have a band aid or something?" He holds up his thumb to show it's wrapped in paper towel.

"Hey, kid." Emma interjects. "I can just heal it for you, if you want. No big deal."

"Yeah, okay." Henry unwraps it and holds it up to Emma.

She holds her hand over and focuses. His thumb quivers slightly, and the edges of the cut begin to close, but stop before it's actually healed.

"Huh," Emma says, glancing up at Regina self-consciously. Surface cut healing was the third thing she taught her. "I guess maybe the darkness messed with my magic a little bit. But if that's the only thing I have to deal with, we should be okay."

She shakes out her hand then hold it over the cut again. After a few seconds of nothing happening, Emma groans. "Come on! What is this?" Suddenly, a cloud of dark grey magic envelops Emma's hand. The cut on Henry's thumb heals almost instantly.

"Emma," David begins.

"That wasn't light magic." Snow finishes.

"I-uh…" Emma slides off the stool and backs up, "No, I think this is okay. It's just more powerful now, right?" The others don't look convinced. Least of all Regina. "It's not that bad, I'll prove it. Kid, pass me that candle over there." Henry reaches for the candle, but Regina stops him, placing a hand on his arm.

She discards the blanket once again and stands, ignoring the look Henry gives her. "I think it might be best for you to take a break from magic for a while. Dark magic like this can be very dangerous."

"Seriously? Come on, Regina, you're the one who taught me to use my magic! I'm not instantly evil or anything because of this. And to be honest, I don't think you're the one to be lecturing about not using dark magic."

Regina's eyes narrow and she steps forward in a way that would be menacing, sans fuzzy slippers. "I think I'm _exactly_ the person to be lecturing about the perils of dark magic."

Emma narrows her eyes and raises her hand in the direction of the candle. A tiny flame sputters into existence and Emma smiles in triumph.

Moments later, each mug of hot cocoa on the table, plus the candle, explode. Emma jumps, and Snow dodges to the side, but Henry and David each get soaked in steaming liquid. "Ah! Sorry!" Emma winces, stepping forward to help, but looks away hearing a soft grunt to the side.

Regina is in the midst of picking herself up off the floor, a small dent in the wall where her head hit.

"Regina!" Emma runs to her side, holding out her hand to help her up, but she waves it away. "Are you okay? Did I do that?"

"You did, Swan." Regina looks even more grumpy and tired than before. "You got a little angry with me over magic and knocked me halfway across the room. You are not in control of your actions right now, the Dark One is." She drags herself to her feel, using the wall for support.

David guides Henry to the bathroom to wipe up.

"I…" Emma pauses. "I think I need to go figure this out." She moves towards the door.

"Wait, Emma!" Snow says, "Where are you going?"

"I don't know, maybe I'll see how Gold is doing. If he's awake maybe he can give me some pointers… or maybe Belle can help me out. She's the only person who's spent lots of time around a Dark One."

Emma is halfway to the door when Regina steps forward and calls out, "Emma, just… I know more than anyone how addictive dark magic can be."

Emma sighs and turns away from the door, addressing both of them. "I'm okay. We all knew that I wouldn't come out of this unscathed. If it's just a little dark magic, I can deal with that. It's not like I'm a different person now. I'm still the saviour, right?"

Regina frowns and gets the same look she gets right before scolding Henry for doing something dangerous, but Snow interjects before she can say anything.

"Emma, I've seen dark magic do terrible things to lots of people. I watched Regina go through it firsthand. This kind of magic, it might not seem like it's changed you yet, but it will. Over time, every choice you make will send you down the same path. A dark path. We all care about you too much to let that happen to you."

"Please, mom." Says Henry, stepping out of the other room, still wiping cocoa and wax off of his shirt. "Just listen to what my mom has to say."

A defeated sigh escapes Emma. "I want to, kid. And I will, I swear. Just not right now. I need to get a handle on this and I don't think it's in any of your best interests to be near me when I do."

Regina nods in understanding, but still steps forward and puts her hand on Emma's arm, forcing her full attention. "I get that you think it's a good idea to do this alone, and trust me, it's not. But…" She trails off and looks over at Henry for a beat. His face is red from the hot liquid, but otherwise unharmed. "It would be an even worse idea for me to try and stop you right now. So do what you think you have to, but if you start to feel that dark magic affecting you, in any way…"

Emma nods. "Don't worry, I'll find you."

Neither of them notice Snow straighten in surprise at hearing those words. Or see the look her and David share.

"Yes. Come and find me as soon as you feel ready to let me help. Don't be an idiot about this, Swan."

Once again, Emma nods her understanding. "I won't." She looks back to the rest of the room and pulls out of Regina's grasp. "I'll see you guys really soon, I promise."

The door shuts behind her with a dull click.


	2. Chapter 2

Regina enters Grannies with more energy than she's had the past couple days. Even though they still haven't heard from Emma, she's mostly recovered from the attack. She notices Snow and David sitting at the bar, sharing a plate of pancakes and doing the crossword together.

She looks at the couple with distaste and sits down next to them. "How do you two do it? You're always being torn apart, and forced into horrible situations. How are you still this close?" She had just spent the morning at an ultrasound with Zelena regaling her with stories from New York, and all the fun things she and Robin did together.

Snow answers almost immediately. "It's about total trust in each other."

"And learning from past mistakes so you can grow together." Says David.

"Ugh. I'm sorry I asked." Regina pauses a moment. "But... how does it always work out perfectly for you?"

"Oh, it doesn't. We might end up completely apart from one another, hence our saying."

"You don't worry you'll find each other too late?"

"No, we follow our hearts and it usually works out in the long run." Snow finishes a word and looks up at her. "Regina, are you okay?"

Regina half nods and makes a dismissive hand gesture. "It's just that it never seems to work out for me and Robin, even in the long run so it would seem."

Snow frowns. "Maybe you should talk to the Blue Fairy about it. The fairies are the ones that pointed you towards him in the first place, right?"

"How did you know that?"

"I literally own a book where you're a main character."

"Right." Regina looks over to the other side of the diner and nudges Snow. "Don't look now, but I think bookworm is breaking up with her boy toy."

Snow glances behind her and winces. Belle looks on the edge of tears, as always, but Will just shrugs and says something that makes her laugh. He then pours a small bit of amber liquid from a flask into her cup and a generous amount into his. They then clink glasses together and take a sip.

Regina slides out of her stool and walks across the diner to their table. "Belle. How's Rumple?"

Belle jumps a bit at her sudden appearance, but composes herself quickly. "He's still asleep. Well, I think magical coma might be the better word for it. The apprentice says that if we wake him up now he might die."

"And this apprentice, has he said anything about contacting Merlin?"

"Just that he can't after Emma hit him with that blast of light magic. He's weak right now, but hopefully soon…" Belle shrugs.

Regina scoffs, "So we're just going to wait around now? While Emma suffers as the Dark one, we-" She gestures at belle's cup, "drink with our hot cocoa?"

"Like I said before. If you find Emma and bring her to me I can try and help, but there's not much else I can do." Belle says with narrowed eyes.

Regina is saved from finding a retort when a loud noise comes from outside the diner. An explosion mixed with the sound of grating metal and shattering glass. The entire diner jumps in surprise.

Grumpy comes barreling into the diner. "The clock tower was just destroyed! Something exploded from the inside!" Most of the diner's patrons rushes outside to see what's going on.

They look down the street to see that it's true. Debris is scattered across the street from the tower. Hook is already approaching the building. He sees the group outside the diner and gestures wildly at them with his hook. Regina shares a look of understanding with Snow and David, and they take off down the street. Even Belle and Will follow.

Hook sees the group coming and nods. "It must be her, right?" He looks at the glass littering the street and mutters under his breath, "Who keeps fixing this thing?"

Belle unlocks the door and they all rush up the stairs to the door leading into the tower. David tries the knob but finds it locked. "Belle, do you have a key?" She shakes her head. "Emma! Are you in there?"

There's the sound of footsteps and a soft bang noise. Emma mutters incomprehensibly.

"We're coming in!" yells Snow.

"No, don't come up!" Emma shouts through the closed door.

"Emma, please!" Snow shouts back. She waits for a response, but none comes. She looks over at Will. "Pick the lock."

Will nods and kneels by the rusted doorknob. He's just gotten out a pick when the door and the entire wall start to shimmer with magic. He jumps back just as the door disappears, becoming the same colourless stone as the rest of the wall.

Emma shouts something again; now indistinguishable behind the wall.

Regina sighs and steps forward. "This is getting ridiculous." She waves her arms and disappears in a cloud of purple smoke.

She reappears on the other side of the wall and looks up the wooden steps to the platform by the now-mangled clock face. "Emma?" She begins to climb up and spots the other woman crouched on the floor, her arms wrapped around her knees. She's only wearing her white tank-top and jeans, despite the chill in the air.

Emma shifts, and looks up, her face obscured by her hair. "What are you doing in here? I told you all to leave. I can't be seen right now."

"That's ridiculous. How many times do I have to tell you to keep yourself connected to the people you love? Come on, we'll go collect the rabble and have dinner at Grannies or something." Emma doesn't move so Regina narrows her eyes and thinks to the one think that helped her out of the dark. "Henry's waiting."

Emma raises her head fully and the soft streetlight coming through the clock face illuminates her face. Regina takes an involuntary step backwards then groans. "Oh, no… Emma."

There's tough, leathery skin in splotches covering half of Emma's face. Her right eye is a bright, lizard-like, gold colour that reflects the light. Her hair has lost its sheen, and hangs limp. There are two nails on her hand that have sharpened, and lengthened. They almost look like claws now.

"I can't stop it from happening." Emma says, in a dead voice. "It's taking over." Light magic mixed with random streaks of darkness bursts violently from her hand with multiple sparks that scorch the floor then die out.

Regina slowly inches closer to Emma, with one hand up to defend herself quickly if need be. "Just try to relax. We can get your parents and Hook in here, they can help…"

"No!" Emma shouts. The railing behind her crumples in on itself and hangs in splinters. "I don't want to see any of them. I just feel so… angry. I know it's not actually me that's angry with them, but I can't help it. I just want…" She trails off when Regina lowers herself so she's sitting next to Emma. Their shoulders touch, and Emma suddenly finds herself grounded by the contact.

"You want everybody else to feel what you're feeling. You want to lash out at the people closest to you, because they're easy targets. Plus now I bet you're having trouble seeing why they're close to you at all. Why could they love you, when you've been through what you have?"

Emma meets her gaze then looks down, ashamed. "Yes. That's exactly it. At first I thought I needed to be alone to protect them, now I'm not sure what I'm feeling."

"Magical darkness works like a parasite. It latches on and feeds off whatever you were before, turning you on your loved ones so you're isolated and it can grow even faster."

"I should go with you, I know. It's just… I've been trying to get a hold on this magic, but it just keeps getting-" Another burst of sparks comes, brightening the room for a few short seconds and leaving more scorch marks. "…I think the light magic is actually making it worse, somehow."

Regina looks up at the room and notices burns and small areas of destruction littered everywhere.

"This is only happening because you're alone. I'm sure of it," Regina lies, forcing a confident smile. "Come on, let's go have dinner and it'll all calm down." She stands and offers her hand to Emma.

She takes it, hesitantly, but grows in confidence when Regina's hand doesn't immediately combust. "Alright." She can't help but smile back. "I guess it's your turn to be the hero now, huh?"

"Oh, I hardly offering to walk you down the block to a terrible diner qualifies me as a hero." Regina knocks some dust and splintered wood off her otherwise pristine skirt.

"No, no…" Emma smiles and they start to descend the wooden stairs. "That's nice too, but I was talking about your whole attitude about this. You're going far out of your way to make sure I'm not an idiot, and I really appreciate it. Plus, you said it yourself. You're practiced at fighting the Darkness. Sounds like a hero to me."

"I don't think it counts if it's your own evil you're fighting."

"Well, as the curse-anointed saviour and hero, I completely disagree." Emma's voice has taken on a teasing tone, and Regina would be comforted by the fall back to routine, if it weren't for the one golden eye, reminding her that everything is not as it should be.

Regina teleports them to the other side of the wall and the whole crowd is still there. Even Will stuck around, he lets the coin he was flipping between his fingers slip into his hand when he sees Emma. She reaches for her face self-consciously. "Hey, everybody."

Hook steps forward and grabs her hand. If there's any hesitation at the sight of her face beginning to change, he buries it deep. "Swan, we've been so worried. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Thanks to Regina, I now see I may have been acting a little impulsively. We can figure this out together."

Hook smiles and leans in, pressing his lips to Emma's in a sweet kiss that they both pull away from giddy. Regina looks past them and notices Belle frowning slightly, her eyes locked on the couple.

The group leaves the building as one, bur Emma pulls Snow to the back of the group so she can talk to her alone.

"Do you still have the dagger?" She asks. Snow nods. "Good. I just… I want you to know that I'm not totally in control of the choices I'm making and…"

"But we can help you with that."

Emma smiles a little sadly. "I know you will, but seriously, if I ever start to do anything… use the dagger to stop me. Don't hesitate because I'm your daughter. If you have to, use it to order me into the cells at the station, or even one of those creepy rooms under the hospital."

"Emma, I-" The hesitant look on Snows face gives Emma some concerns.

"Look, if you can't do it, give the dagger to Regina."

With a doubtful look, Snow agrees.

"Great, now let's go get something to eat."

* * *

Hopefully going to get into stuff about Merlin in the next one... Again, first fanfiction, so if there's anything flawed, or NQR about anything in here, please let me know :)


	3. Chapter 3

The sun is beating down on Regina as she makes her way up the steps towards Granny's. She almost regrets wearing all black… almost.

She pushes open the doors and scans over the faces of the few people in the diner as fast as she can, ignoring the looks of apprehension and fear that still follow her. She spots the woman she's looking for just paying for the tray of coffees in her hand and turning away from the bar with a serene smile on her face. The smile fades as she sees Regina, but doesn't fall directly into hatred, which is a nice change.

"Regina." Says the Blue Fairy. Her voice is tense, as if she's bracing for an uncomfortable situation. "What can I do for you today? More borderline dark magic? Do you have even more personal questions you want answered?"

Regina sighs. "I do have a couple questions I want to ask you, but unfortunately they're going to have to wait a second. I seem to have a posse today." She gestures to the entrance where Snow has just arrived with David. Snow struggles to hold the door open and fit Neil's basket through at the same time. Neil starts to cry when the basket bumps a little harshly against the doorframe, so Snow stops to comfort him, resulting in David almost tripping over the both of them.

Regina watches with half amusement for a few moments before turning back to Blue. "We need to find some help. Emma may seem fine now, but I have a feeling that she's going to get very bad very fast." She sighs. "All it takes is one incident…"

Snow places the basket on the table beside them. "Regina says you might know where to find The Sorcerer?" She looks up from Neil for long enough to register the look of horror on Blue's face. "What's wrong?"

"What's wrong?" Blue almost laughs in disbelief. "What's wrong is you're actively searching for the man who is arguably the most powerful magician of all time. No, I don't know where to find him. If I did though, I wouldn't tell you. He plays with fate like a child with blocks. Merlin is not a man you want to meet; not if you value your life or your sanity."

"There's no way to contact him?" David asks, "Our daughter inexplicably becoming The Dark One isn't just something we can deal with through hope. No matter how much we want to believe it. We need something big."

"No. The only person that can contact him is his apprentice, and I'm sorry, but I have nothing further to say on the subject."

"Can you help us wake up The Apprentice?" Snow asks. "Regina tried, but having the Darkness in him then getting hit with that light magic… He's not doing so well. Please. For old times' sake?"

Blue sighs. "I'll try tonight. That's the best I can do. But if it doesn't work then I'm done." She turns to Regina. "Now, what was it you wanted to ask me?"

"Oh." Regina shoots a meaningful look at Snow and David and they abscond to the other end of the diner. "I was just wondering… See, the problem is… It's Robin. Our lives just don't fit! It seems impossible for us to ever be happy together, but it shouldn't be, right? I mean, if he's my true love-"

The blue fairy laughs in shock. "Your true love? You mean the man who now has two children with other women? I don't think so."

Regina takes a step forward menacingly. "What is that supposed to mean? Tinkerbell told me that he was who I was meant to be with. Was she wrong? Is it somebody else?"

"That's not how it works. I don't know exactly who your true love is."

"You know something, now tell me!" Her voice slips dangerously towards 'Evil Queen', and she takes a deep breath. "Please, I would appreciate it if you told me."

Blue shakes her head. "You have it wrong. A true love isn't a definitive person that remains the same, but more of a concept that can change as you grow."

"But what does that _mean_? I'm tired of you idiotic fairies and your riddles. Just tell me what that means for me."

"It means… Robin Hood may have been your perfect match at the time Green used the pixie dust, but you went a different way in your life, and so did he. He married and had a child and you…" Blue gives a look somewhere between condescension and pity that only she can pull off. "Well, you know what you became. Green led you to the person that would have helped you grow from that point in your life… together. Somebody that complimented you perfectly. _Then_. Trying to force a perfect relationship out of this now will only push you more out of your path to true happiness."

Regina is floored. A barrage of emotions pass through her before she lands on fear. "You're saying I missed my shot? I can't get a happy ending now?"

"What I'm saying is you're looking for it in the wrong place, and deep down I think you already knew that. Just find somebody who truly compliments you and stop trying to fix a mistake you made in the past." She looks down at the bag still in her hands. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get some fairies their coffee." She turns to leave.

"Thank you." Regina says. Her mind is reeling, yet she still feels clearer than she has in a while. It's like a confusing fog has been cleared out.

"You're welcome, Regina. And if you have any questions about relationships in the future…" Blue trails off for a second before smiling. "Call Archie. I'm not a therapist." She quickly leaves before Regina can reply.

The quick exit was mostly unnecessary though, as Regina has nothing to say. Her phone beeps with a text from Henry:

 _Hey, I know you're busy with Robin and asking the Blue Fairy about stuff, so I'm meeting Emma to check up on her before I go to school. Don't worry about me I'll be sneaky. We can come up with an operation name for this later._

Regina quickly types out a reply:

 _Don't say anything that might provoke her. I know she would never hurt you on purpose, but if you feel in danger, call me right away._

She pauses then smiles and sends another text:

 _PS. Operation Swan?_

She sends it feeling tense despite Henry's assurances. If anybody can work out how Emma's really feeling, it's Henry. Yet she can't help but remember Henry's namesake, and how darkness can affect those you love more than those you hate.

Across the town, Henry is rolling his eyes at Regina's text. Her worry seems unprecedented to him. He sees Emma walking down the opposite side of the street and calls out. "Mom! Over here!"

Emma waves and crosses the street. "Hey, kid. What's up? Why did you ask me to meet you here?"

"I'm still thinking of an operation name, actually. But I wanted to ask if you have any ideas how we can track down Merlin?"

Emma shrugs. "How would I know? I found out about him at the same time as you."

"Well, Mr. Gold always seemed to know what was going on, and you're the Dark One now, so…"

"Ugh." She shivers. "It feels weird to hear you say that out loud."

Henry looks at Emma's face from the corner of his eye. He can't help but be freaked out by the discolouration and her one eye. The sun seems to gleam off the reptilian-like skin.

"Um…" Henry pauses for a moment, almost unsure of what to ask. "Are you feeling okay? You haven't really been around."

"Sorry, I'll try harder. Every time something got tough in the past I would just deal with it on my own. I'm pulling away, and the fact that I know I'm doing it doesn't make it any easier to stop."

"Well now you have us!" Henry says excitedly. "Our family is clingy enough that you won't get away with it this time. I-"

Henry is cut off as he takes a step puts himself directly in the path of an irritated looking man coming out of a shop. They collide, knocking Henry and Emma back and making him drop his briefcase. The man immediately turns on Henry.

"Hey! Watch where you're going, brat!" He shoots a foul look at Henry as he picks up his case then makes to walk away, but Emma reaches out and grabs his arm.

"What did you just say to my son?" She asks. Her hand begins to develop a small cloud of magic around it.

The man makes eye contact and jerks away, clearly taken aback by Emma's appearance. "What the hell is wrong with your face?"

Emma tightens her hand and pulls him closer threateningly. "What was that?"

Before the man replies, Henry places a hand over Emma's and draws it off the man's shoulder. "Mom, what are you doing? Calm down." He wedges himself between the two and forces Emma to take a couple steps back. "I walked into him, it's no big deal."

Henry shoots a look at the man that says to get out of there as soon as possible, but he doesn't seem to register the danger he's in. He straightens his jacket and eyes them with distaste.

"I knew your freak family was trouble. I tried to tell my village back in the day, but did anybody listen? No. Now look at us. Twice cursed and with an incompetent housewife as our mayor. I can't believe people actually thought 'Snow White' would be a good leader. Now we have two more generations of morons!"

The words seem like something he's been keeping bottled up for a long time. Emma blinks once, then pulls Henry out of the way and raises her hand towards the man. Henry goes white as he realizes her intent. Both of her eyes are golden now, and it only takes a fraction of a second for a ball of searing dark magic to explode out of her hand and hit the man directly in the centre of his chest.

Henry flinches as the man is blown back a few feet and lands with a solid thud. His head cracks against the cement and smoke rises from his torso. He doesn't move.

Emma gasps, staring at her hand like it isn't even a part of her anymore. "I…" She looks at Henry and winces. His face is a perfect reflection of what she is feeling. "Kid… Henry. I…"

Henry tears his eyes from the man and Emma sees they're wide and horrified. "Mom, what did you just do?"

"I didn't mean to!" Emma insists, "I only thought about it for a second, and…"

"You killed him. He didn't even do anything." Henry draws in a ragged breath. "I thought you were going to fight this. I thought you were a hero."

"Henry, I'm not sure what I am, but…" Determination darkens her face. "I need you to believe in me."

A small part of Emma screams at herself to stop what she's doing, that it's the wrong decision, but something instinctual makes her raise a hand to Henry's forehead and recall the spell. Dark grey magic clouds over his eyes and he slumps into Emma's arms for a moment before righting himself.

"Mom? What happened? I was just going to meet you, how did you get here?"

Emma turns him away from the man lying on the road and starts walking in the same direction as earlier. She puts an arm around his shoulder. "I just walked up to you. You were really concentrating on something, huh? Let me guess… an operation name for finding Merlin?"

Henry laughs. "Yeah, I guess. I was thinking something mythical, but nothing fits yet."

They round a corner and they see the school bus pull up to the stop. "Hey," Emma says, "Better go catch that. You have that presentation due today, right? Don't be nervous, okay? You'll do great."

"I'm not nervous, I practiced a lot. Besides…" His cheeks redden just enough for Emma to notice. "My partner is Grace, and she's really smart." Henry pulls away from Emma and jogs up to the bus. He climbs on and Emma's fake smile falls from her face as the bus drives away.

She waits until it's completely out of sight before falling to her knees on the sidewalk. "What have I done?"

* * *

Took me a bit longer to write this one, hopefully the next chapter will be up a little faster. Probably going to get pretty gay in the next one, so yay!


	4. Chapter 4

Emma is walking alone down the streets of Storybrook, evaluating her life. She can feel the darkness now. It was hidden before, hidden behind good intentions. Yet now, she knows that somebody must have found that man she blasted with magic. It probably won't be too hard to tie it to her. Not that she'd go to real people jail or anything. Maybe a cell where her whole family would come and visit. Not that they could keep her in a cell. Her phone buzzes multiple times, but she doesn't even bother checking who's calling.

The streets of Storybrook continue on in a mazelike fashion. Emma winds up on roads she had never seen before, with people who flinch away seeing the physical manifestation of the Darkness on her face. She doesn't stop, or pay attention to the people. She walks with the specific purpose of getting herself lost. The sun begins to sink below the horizon and Emma cuts through a patch of trees and finds herself stepping into a familiar yard.

"Emma?" Regina steps out from behind her tree, holding a bowl full of apples. "What are you doing here?" Her eyes meet Emma's and if she can see that both of her eyes are now golden despite the dark she doesn't mention it

"I was just walking around and ended up here. No idea how… I thought I was going in a completely different direction."

"Are you doing alright? You remembered to pick Henry up from school, right?"

Emma smiles tightly and nods.

Regina sighs in relief. "Good." An awkward silence fills the air as she waits for Emma to say something, but the blonde just stands there, staring at Regina with unnerving eyes. "Did you… want to come in? I was just picking apples to make empanadas."

Emma frowns slightly. "You know, I actually feel like going out. Maybe the Rabbit Hole? You should come, somebody should be keeping an eye on me." She says the last part teasingly, but there's a hint of a plea behind the words.

Without another word, Regina turns and disappears into her house. Emma picks absentmindedly at the stump on the tree where she cut off the branch. Regina emerges shortly after with a jacket on. "Let's go."

Emma waves her hands in the air, a cloud of grey smoke washes over the two women and they appear in front of the Rabbit Hole. Regina stumbles a bit, surprised.

"When did you learn to do that? I certainly didn't teach you."

Emma shrugs. "I don't know. Magic isn't really hard now. I mostly just think about what I want to happen and it does." She holds the door open for Regina and they both go in.

Surprising both of them, nobody really reacts to Emma's face, she asks the bartender about it as they order drinks and he just shrugs. "We're so used to this shit by now. I think we just try to ignore it." He replies.

"Can't argue with that." Emma says, taking her drink as it's slid across the bar. Regina reaches for hers as the man slides it towards her and they collide, making the drink wobble precariously, spilling a few drops before settling.

The bartender somehow manages to not freak out that he almost spilled a drink on "The Evil Queen" and tops off the glass before calmly returning to other bar patrons. Regina drinks and Emma stares at her.

"What is it?" Regina asks.

"I'm just wondering… If that had spilled on you, would you have been pissed?"

"I'd probably be upset for a while, but it's just a gin and tonic. It would wash out."

"But what if it didn't? If you got really pissed at a person, I know you wouldn't just kill them right away. But why?"

Regina frowns. "I don't understand what you're playing at."

"Um…" Emma tries to forget what happened with Henry and the stranger that morning. "I mean, you wouldn't kill somebody now, because you've changed. But is it because you know that it's an "evil" thing to do, logically? Or do you actually feel like it's morally wrong?"

"Oh, wow." Regina has to look away from Emma's curious face in order to formulate her thought. "I think it started as making decisions based on logic, for Henry. But now I guess I may be growing a conscience. But why do you ask?"

Emma tries to think of a lie. One that won't hint at the fact that she's already done something wrong. "I'm trying to figure out if you ever _miss_ being the Evil Queen."

So far, at hearing the "E" word, Regina's response has not been positive, so Emma is surprised when she smiles lightly. "To be completely honest, I do miss some aspects of it. I feel like I have to constantly check my behaviour now, before I just said and did what I wanted. Even though what I wanted to do were pretty terrible things."

Emma nods. "I think that I can understand that. Maybe not the mass slaughtering's, but I saw you when I time traveled. You were not mentally stable at the time."

"I agree. Which is why I'm going to make sure this Darkness doesn't make you do anything you'll regret. You're at a tipping point now, and this is magical darkness and anger. It burns faster and hotter than anything you've ever experienced."

"I'm glad we can understand each other. It's nice to have somebody to talk to."

Regina looks slightly confused, and hesitant. She recalls what the blue fairy told her earlier, and how she had automatically just thought of Henry as being the only person who would ever really understand her. "It's like we're at the same point in our lives."

Emma smiles. "That's it! Only it's flipped I'm the supposed hero with a dark side, and you're the ex-villain with a light side. Funny how things work out." Her phone beeps and she briefly turns on the screen to check the notification.

"Who is it?" Regina asks.

"Nothing important." Emma gasps and leans forward. "Do it to me."

"What?"

"Be the Evil Queen. I want to see what she would be like to me."

Regina looks flabbergasted. "You want to see me act like that? This entire town hates me because of it. And for good reason."

"Please? It would be hilarious."

"What, you want me to crush your heart, burn this place to the ground, then chart Henry off to some undisclosed location against his will?" Regina's tone has gone sour. "You have no idea how easy it is to fall back into bad habits. I don't necessarily feel like going through that just to amuse you."

Emma winces and draws back slightly. "I guess. Sorry." No great paths of conversation stem from that awkward rebuff, and Regina doesn't supply any, so Emma quickly changes the topic. "So how is it with Robin?"

"Well, not well. He doesn't have the progressive attitude regarding limited visitation rights and such that we do here. It would've been a lot easier if he'd been a part of the first curse and knew about divorces."

"Are you really wishing you had cursed your boyfriend?"

Regina laughs. "I suppose so."

Emma looks at her drink then back to Regina. "Do you want to get really drunk then?"

"I really do." Regina admits.

Emma drains her drink then gestures to the bartender they want another round.

Four hours later, Emma has never seen one person consume so much alcohol and still be able to function properly.

"To be completely honest" Regina says before finishing draining her drink, "I thought you might have other intentions for inviting me here."

Emma's brow furrows. They had been telling nonsense stories about their past that didn't have any real weight then laughing uncontrollably at each other the entire time there. Emma had even gotten out of her chair to dance to a song playing on the jukebox at one point while Regina filmed it with her phone. "Intentions like what? What else normally happens on a girl's night out? I really don't have many, so if we're doing this wrong, somehow…?"

Regina shakes her head. "No, not like that. We've never gotten along well in the past so I thought that with you being the new Dark One that you might target me first."

"It was you that didn't get along with me, if you remember." Emma almost laughs thinking about how territorial Regina was when they first met, and how off Storybrook was yet she still didn't notice. "I was decently civil until you framed me."

"You're probably right. I was convinced you were out to get me though." The larger picture comes rushing back and Regina can't help but voice the confusion she's had. "As far as you knew, you were giving everything up for me. For _my_ happy ending. Why would you do that?"

"Regina… You know I was just joking around about the Evil Queen stuff earlier, right?" Her voice is soft, almost regretful.

"Why do you bring that up?"

"It's just… Emma lifts her hands into the air in front of her as if trying to quantify something, or formulate her thought properly. "I know you went through a lot. Even though you patched things up with Mary Margaret, you still lost Daniel. Then there was your mom, and the forced marriage, then god knows what it's like to have Rumpelstiltskin breathing down your neck your whole life. I can't say I've been through anything close to what you have, but I can sympathize. If I could help you to move on, to be happy? Why wouldn't I do anything I could?" She finishes with a half-smile. It's bitter, but genuine.

Regina's mouth falls open in surprise. "Emma, I…"

Emma shrugs and stands up. "Are you hungry? I could eat. Are there any other restaurants in Storybrook besides Granny's? Seriously, I walked around all day and didn't see any." She signals the bartender. "You can just put this all on her tab, right?" She gestures to Regina, who is trying to collect herself enough to stand up properly. He nods and she strides out the doors without giving Regina a chance to react.

Emma gasps as the cold air hits her. She has to brace herself against the wall of the Rabbit Hole as the world spins for a couple seconds. Regina calmly walks out and locates Emma briefly after.

"There are lots of places besides Granny's. Except its three AM. I have to go home, and you should too."

Emma sighs dramatically. It's mainly just an attempt to clear her head but it helps lighten the mood a bit. "Fine. But we're walking this time. Maybe something interesting will happen on the way back. The Mayor and the Dark One, we always manage to get into trouble somehow."

"The Mayor and the bail bondsman, you mean?"

"Bail bondsperson."

She laughs. "Let's go. But I highly doubt anything is going to-" She's cut off as somebody runs into her, making her stumble and balance precariously on her heels. She spins quickly and grimaces at the person before her. His suit is ripped and dirty, it looks like he hasn't showered in days. "Sydney."

Sydney yelps and backs up. "You're Majesty, I…" He looks between Regina and Emma's crocodile skin. He quickly takes in Regina's murderous face, Emma's unbridled delight at the events, and immediately turns to run in the other direction.

He makes it further than he should, as Regina realizes the heel has broken on her shoe. She pulls them off and straightens to do something, but a small object flies through the air and hit's him solidly in the back of the head. He stumbles and falls to one knee, just long enough for Regina to stride up and grab his shoulder. Emma runs up behind her, holding the broken heels.

"You sold me out to the Snow Queen, rat."

"She tricked me! She only wanted the mirror you had, I was just a pawn!"

Regina's face has gone calm, and the voice that comes out is imperious and deadly. "You'll always be a pawn, you insufferable traitor. Even when you were a powerful genie, you gave up everything because I wanted it. Now see what you get."

Emma winces and grabs Regina's hand as she raises it. "Hey, now… I was supposed to be the one getting in trouble tonight, not you." Regina turns to glare at her and Emma nods in understanding. "I know. I'm probably not the best person to be telling you this, but don't do anything you'll regret."

Regina slowly lowers he hand and backs away from Sydney. He stumbles away, taking off down the street.

She watches him go with a pit in her stomach. Something in her aches to throw a fireball after his fleeing form. She sighs when he's finally out of sight. "Shouldn't you arrest him or something?" She asks Emma. "Why did we just let him go?"

"It's not like he did anything illegal."

Regina purses her lips indignantly and scans the ground for the object that hit Sydney in the back of his head earlier. "I can't believe you threw your phone at him. What possessed you?"

Emma laughs. "It was an impulse decision. If I had used magic, he would not be here right now."

Regina can't help but smile at that. She locates the phone as the screen lights up with a new text. She picks it up, smiling, but freezes as she reads the name on the screen. "This is…" She starts in a confused tone but quickly turns to an accusatory one. "You've been ignoring Henry."

Emma reaches for the phone, "Hey, wait." She misses and Regina turns away, opening up her inbox.

Regina begins to read off the screen. "Mom, where are you? I'm off school. I thought we were going to go talk to Belle together." She scrolls down. "I walked home, Grandma and Grandpa don't know where you are either. Are you ok?" She keeps scrolling, finding texts from Mary Margaret and David as well as Henry. She hold the phone up accusatorily.

Emma winces. "Hey, it's not a big deal. I…"

"There's over twenty messages here! Why didn't you answer him?"

"He's been home alone before. It's not like the world ended just because I didn't answer."

"But this doesn't make sense. Why ignore him?"

Emma gets defensive. "I just didn't think it was a big deal. It's not like I'm a real parent anyways. As you're always so keen to remind me, _you_ raised him."

"Oh, now she doesn't want to be a mother." Regina mutters darkly to herself.

Emma huffs. "Yeah, well, maybe I don't."

Taken aback, Regina almost drops the phone. " _Sorry, what_?"

A look crosses Emma's face that Regina can't decipher. "I'm probably just going to screw it up anyways. It's better in the long run if I just leave him alone. Honestly, I should have left Storybrook already. I wouldn't have my powers then. It would be safer."

Regina steps forward and grabs Emma's hand. She stares until Emma meets her gaze. "I want to tell you that everything is young to be fine, but I have a feeling you did something to our son, and I'm going to need you to tell me what it was."

"It was just a memory spell. To make him forget something."

Regina's grip on Emma's hand has become crushing. "Forget what?"

"It doesn't matter! The point is I did it, and who knows what lines I'll be crossing next. I'm not safe to be around right now." She pulls out of her grasp and steps away.

"Emma, wait!" Regina shouts, but it's too late. Grey smoke envelops Emma and she's gone in the next second.

Regina swears and pulls out her own phone. She notices a couple texts from Henry, asking if she knew where Emma was, and frowns that she missed them. She scrolls through her contacts and sighs. The phone is picked up on the first ring.

"Hello?"

"Snow? You have Charming with you? We need to do something about Emma."

"Is she okay?" Snow's voice is panicky and Regina can tell she hadn't been sleeping.

"Not quite. Do you have the dagger? More importantly, is Henry sleeping there?"

"Yes and yes."

"Okay, good. Bring the dagger to the sheriff's station and make sure Henry stays there. We need to have an intervention."


	5. Chapter 5

Regina is half asleep in the sheriff's office when the others come in. She has to shake herself awake and stands rather shakily, still feeling the effects of her girl's night with Emma. "What on earth took you so long? It's nearly five AM." She asks Mary Margaret and David. "I did say this was going to be an intervention, didn't I? Not a family brunch."

"You did wake us up in the middle of the night." Says David.

"And then we had to get a hold of Ashley to babysit Neal for us, which wasn't easy this early in the morning." She reaches into her bag and pulls out the Dark One's dagger. "Now, do you want to tell us why we're here? I thought Emma was doing okay."

Regina sighs and shakes her head. "I thought she was, but I actually think she's just barely keeping it together. Sometimes she says things and it's like she's just pretending to be the person she used to be but it's slipping. We need to get the truth out of her, and she's not going to just tell us."

"What did she do?" David asks.

"I don't know, but it had something to do with Henry. I checked up on him a little before you got here. He's fine, but she made him forget something, and without knowing what it was I don't stand a chance of reversing the spell. Hence…" She looks pointedly at the dagger.

Mary Margaret nods and holds it up in front of her. "Dark One, I summon thee."

The atmosphere shifts and suddenly Emma appears in front of them. She looks beat. There are dark circles under her eyes and her hair is a tangled mess. When she sees the crowd in front of her she visibly shrinks inward. She shakily pulls out the swivel chair from the desk and sits down in it shoulders hunching instinctively. "Alright, let's get this over with."

"Emma, we're concerned about you." Says Mary Margaret. "You're hardly ever at home, you completely ignore our calls most of the time, and now Regina says you've done something to Henry? You say you still care about us all, but you're not showing it very well."

"Have you thought that maybe I'm avoiding you all _because_ I care about you?" Emma asks.

David cuts in. "Plus, I talked to Hook. He says he hasn't seen you since we all had lunch. You left before he did and haven't been so see him since. Why?"

Emma frowns. "Like I need that emotional slap to the face."

David nods slightly. "I'm going to call him. You need to feel connected to people right now."

"What, are you going to use the dagger to make me talk to him? In case you haven't noticed, you weren't really there while I grew up. You can't say you know what's best for me now."

"If we have to force you to have a real conversation, we will. We're your parents and we care about you, so we can't sit idly by while you completely isolate yourself."

David pulls out his phone and leaves the room as Emma rolls her eyes at him. She glances up at Regina. "I'm starting to see why you held a grudge for so long. They're really stubborn."

Regina shakes her head. "Oh no, don't try to bring me into this. I know you're trying to be funny to lighten the mood but you're in a little too deep for that." She looks at Mary Margaret. "Ask her what she made Henry forget."

At her mother's hesitation to use the dagger again, Emma sighs. "It doesn't matter, Henry's fine. I feel bad about it, so let's let it go." She stands from the chair and looks around, finally getting some energy back. "You know, I think I'm going to go find Lily. Now that I can sympathize I think we might really get along."

A cloud of smoke surrounds her and she's gone. Snow gasps in disbelief.

"Emma, get back here." She says into the dagger. Emma reappears and looks at Snow angrily.

"Seriously?" She asks.

Snow doesn't even reply. She holds up the dagger again. "Now go stand in the cell over there and don't leave until I say you can."

Emma shoots a glare at Snow and a questioning look at Regina as she simply watches the exchange. Reluctantly, she walks over to the cell, pulls open the door, and steps inside. She doesn't break eye contact with Snow once.

Snow glances at Regina. "It's like dealing with a disobedient teenager." She remarks.

"Well don't revel in this lost moment of motherhood yet," Regina says dryly. She reaches over and snatches the dagger from her grasp. "If you're not going to ask, I will." She marches over to the jail cell.

"Regina, wait. I can-" Emma tries to step outside the cell as she pleads, but is repelled backwards. Regina holds up the dagger just as David re-enters the room. He looks on in concern, but doesn't interrupt.

"Okay Swan, I want you to tell me exactly what it was you made Henry forget without omitting any important details."

"We were walking down the street when Henry bumped into somebody. I don't know who he was." Emma speaks rapidly, without being able to think about what she's going to say before she says it. "This man was not very friendly. He didn't apologize for knocking into Henry then he started insulting my family. I got mad and blasted him with magic. I didn't stick around to see how he was after, but if I had to guess he's dead. So I cast a spell on Henry and made him forget it all."

The room is silent. Emma falls out of her trance and winces. "I regretted what I did right after it happened. Is Henry okay? It's my first memory spell and I hope I didn't mess it up."

Regina is unable to voice her disappointment or disbelief at the majority of the story, but Henry always gets a response from her. "He's fine. A little confused, but fine. He's been looking through the book about clues to where Merlin may be. To help you."

David finally bursts. "Emma, what were you thinking? You say you're doing fine, but you're clearly not! How did we not know about this until now?"

Emma raises an eyebrow. "Well, I didn't want to point it out before, but you're a terrible sheriff." She nods towards the phone on the desk, the light blinking on it to indicate a full voicemail box. "There's got to be about a dozen messages left on that thing by now."

David picks up the phone and presses the button. He puts it down after only a moment. "Somebody found the body of a man lying on the street. I'd bet the rest are about the same."

"We've been putting it off because we wanted to believe you were going to be okay, but I think we need to ask Belle if she knows anything and maybe even the Apprentice if he's up to it." Snow says.

Regina nods in agreement. "Let's go right now. No time to lose."

"But wait," Says Snow. "We need somebody here to watch her." Just that moment, as if being summoned, Hook walks through the door. He runs straight up to Emma.

"Swan, are you alright? You haven't been answering your cellphone, and I haven't been able to track you down for days."

Regina rolls her eyes at Hook being out of the loop, but sets her resolve. "Great. We have a pirate babysitter now to make sure she doesn't do anything _bad_. So let's get going. I'll meet you at the pawn shop." She disappears in a cloud of smoke.

Hook looks at the Charmings. "What's going on?"

"Emma killed somebody. Can you try and get through to her while we check in with Belle and Gold?"

Hook nods, seemingly unfazed by the news for some reason. "Aye."

After deliberation, Snow and David take the dagger with them to the Pawn Shop. Not as mistrust of Hook, but Snow hasn't let it leave her side once since the incident and doesn't want to lose track of it. By the time they make it to the pawn shop, Regina has already woken up Belle and they're scowling at each other.

"What do you mean there's nothing you can do?"

Belle crosses her arms. "I was with Rumple for years. You seriously don't think that if I could have done something I would have?" She glances at the concerned Snow and David before lowering her guard. "I'm sorry, but even true love's kiss didn't work."

"Seriously?" Snow asks. "I thought it could break any curse."

"Well, it did at first. But I don't think being The Dark One is technically a curse. It's a completely different entity, working through you. The kiss may have worked for a moment, but I think it just weakened the hold the Darkness had on Rumple for a short time; it didn't actually change anything."

"But it might be enough to keep her from going completely dark?" David asks hopefully. "At least until the Apprentice can help us find Merlin?"

Belle frowns. "Maybe, but… Didn't Emma tell you? The apprentice is gone. He vanished a few days ago right before I told her all the same things I just told you."

"Emma came by here? She already knew about the kiss and everything?" Snow asks. Her voice is tinged with surprise, but it's mostly disappointed.

"Yes, right after we all had lunch at Granny's. I brought her here after to tell her in private about… you know."

"Know what?" Regina asks.

Snow raises her eyebrows. "Hook isn't her true love. Otherwise the kiss would have done something." Belle nods and Snow grimaces. "And we practically just locked them in a room together to make them work it out."

Regina laughs. "That is some quality parenting. Maybe next you should set her up with one of the dwarves."

"It's not funny!" Snow shakes her head, mad at herself. "Now we've come all the way here when the Apprentice is gone, and everything you can tell us you already told Emma. The worst part is she didn't even feel the need to let us know. We have to go back there."

Regina steps forward. "I agree. But we need to get through to her and if the pirate isn't the right person, we need to make stop on the way back."

"I'll call Hook and let him know we're on our way." Says David. He pulls out his phone and punches in the number. Hook's phone rings but isn't picked up.

Across town, Hook deliberately presses the ignore key on his screen and puts the phone to the side. "So that's really the whole story?" He asks Emma.

She nods. "Yes. Is it… _bad_ that I feel worse about tricking Henry than I do about killing the guy?"

Taken aback, Hook can only shrug. "You're bound to have dark intentions now. It's unavoidable. But if you can keep that connection to your boy you might pull through."

Emma sighs. "That's not what I asked."

Without any hesitation, Hook rises from the chair he has been sitting in and steps into the cell with Emma. He guides her to the bed and they both sit down. "No. It's not bad that you have a stronger connection to your _son_ than you do to a stranger that insulted you."

Emma lays her head on his shoulder, but draws no comfort from the contact. She feels like something is off within her, like a piece is out of place. "Sorry if I'm being a downer, it's just hard to think of anything other than the fact that I'm not totally in control of my own actions and emotions."

"Can I do anything to help?"

Suddenly Emma perks up. She pulls away and smiles at him. "Why don't we just leave?"

"What? Leave… Storybrook you mean?"

"Yeah, there's no magic in the real world. If we left I could be myself again. It's the best idea I've come up with yet!"

"I don't know, Swan… Don't you want to be here with your family? They love you, Dark One and all."

Emma rolls her eyes. "I don't belong here, I never have. Plus, if recent events have proven anything, they're better off without me."

Hook frowns and seriously considers while Emma stares earnestly. Finally he sighs. "Alright, I know you're going with or without me at this point, and I would rather be with you when you do."

Emma grins and kisses him briefly before standing. "Great, we can take your ship! Can you get it ready to sail? I can't leave this cell yet, but I shouldn't be in here longer than a day. Once I can convince my parents to let me out, we're free to go anywhere we wish."

Hook chuckles. "You know what? I actually like the sound of that."

Emma kisses him again before shoving him towards the door. "Okay, go! Just don't tell anybody, okay? It'll make it too hard."

"Aye, Swan." Hook turns as he reaches the hallway leading out of the building. "You'll be there tonight?" He asks.

"Tomorrow morning at the very latest. Make sure everything is ready to go." Hook leaves and Emma sighs with relief. She can't shake the feeling that once she gets away from everything she'll get that piece back. The one that's been missing. She lies down on the bed, nothing left to do but wait to be released from the cell.


	6. Chapter 6

Emma paces the cell. She had to shut the door after twenty minutes because the sight of a clear doorway, with nothing to stop her from leaving except the dagger, was driving her crazy. She is in the middle of humming the tune to a song she can't remember when she hears footsteps coming towards the room. She stops pacing and stands by the bars, waiting for her parents or even Regina to hopefully let her out.

Instead, Henry comes running into the room.

"Mom!" He shouts, eagerly running up to the cell and opening it up. "Grandma and grandpa said you weren't doing well, what happened?"

Emma stares at Henry for a few moments before shouting out to the hallway, "Okay, message received! You guys want to come in here and stop trying to guilt trip me?"

"They aren't out there." Henry says. "Mom took them to the author's house to look for clues for Merlin… again."

"Of course she did." Emma gestures to the cage. "Let's just abandon Emma in jail for no good reason."

Henry smiles slyly. "About that…" He reaches into his backpack and digs around for a moment while Emma watches curiously. He finds what he was looking for and grabs it. "I may have gone through grandma's bag when she wasn't looking." He pulls out the dark one's dagger, shiny and deadly looking even under the fluorescent lights.

Emma gasps. "Henry, you're a genius! Quick, let me out of here."

Henry raises the dagger without thinking about it. "You can leave the cell now, if you want."

Emma pushes open the door and visibly relaxes the second she crosses the threshold. She pulls Henry into a quick hug then heads straight for the exit.

"Wait." Henry says. Emma stops dead in her tracks and Henry glances down. He had just placed the dagger in the backpack, his hand is still on it. "Oh, sorry. Ignore that." He pulls the dagger out of the bag and places it down on the table beside him. "Where are you going?"

Emma turns around. "I don't know, wherever I want. You know me. I don't like being bottled up for too long."

"You should talk to Sydney about that." Henry smiles at the joke he made but Emma doesn't react. He falls back into being serious. "Seriously, mom. Where are you going?"

"I was going to leave Storybrook, to be completely honest with you." Emma pauses for half a second before grinning. "Want to come?"

"Leaving?" Henry's voice cracks, but he ignores it. "But why? Everybody is here."

Emma steps forward and puts her hands on his shoulders. "Kid, we both know I don't belong here. Neither of us do. We were raised in the real world, not fairy tale land. Well, you were raised in a messed up shadow of the real world, but still." Her eyes dart over Henry's shoulder and fall on the dagger for a half second.

Henry backs up a couple steps. "No! Of course I don't want to leave. This is everything I know!"

"Really? What about Avery? What about _all_ those friends you had in Boston? We could have that again. Once I leave the town the darkness won't exist in me anymore. I'll be back to normal and we can have a good life. Isn't that what you want?"

"Not like this! I have friends here too, and here we aren't living a lie." Henry shakes his head as if disappointed in her. "Plus, when Rumpelstiltskin left town he was still evil. Whatever that darkness is doing to you, it won't go away when you leave. You'll just be powerless and alone."

Emma frowns. "Do you think I'm evil for wanting to leave?"

"No. I mean… not really. It's just… The way you've been acting isn't like you. Not picking me up from school, ignoring my texts... Plus you were going to leave without me just now. It's like you don't even care anymore. At least… not the same way you used to. It's like my mom used to be when I was little. She loved me, but only because it made her life better. It was a selfish love, and you coming here helped her. But now you can't even see you're doing the same thing."

Guilt passes through Emma. Her eyes stop flashing to the dagger and fall solely on Henry's desperate face. "I do care though. That's why I want to leave. The selfish thing was asking you to come with me." She turns and leaves the room before Henry can say anything.

Henry groans, exasperated that his speech accomplished nothing. He takes a second to shove the dagger back into his bag before running out after her. He pulls out his phone on the way out and sends a quick text to Regina:

 _Didn't work. She just left the station. I'm about to follow._

Regina replies before Henry can even exit the building:

 _We're right behind you. Did she fall for it when you switched out the dagger for the fake?_

Henry pushes open the door to the building and steps outside. He sees Emma making a beeline across the street, in the direction of the docks. He types out the reply with just a glimmer of hope that the old Emma is still there:

 _She didn't even take it._

He sprints across the street and calls out, "Wait! Mom, come back for a second!"

Emma ducks her head and continues walking. "Just let me go!" She shouts back.

Henry frowns and picks up the pace, but can't quite keep up with her. "They told me what you did!" He shouts out in desperation.

Emma stops in her tracks as suddenly as if the dagger was used on her. Henry finally catches up and walks around to face her. Her face is contorted into a mix of guilt and shock. "They told you?" She asks.

Henry nods. "Of course they did. I had an entire chunk of my memory missing, I was freaked out! The old you would have told me the truth. You always valued the truth. You want to keep pretending you've been doing all this for my own good?"

Emma visibly crumples inward. "I don't think I know what good is anymore."

A hand falls on Emma's shoulder. She glances up to see her mom. "It's a good thing we're here to help out with that." Snow says.

David walks up with Regina close behind him. "We didn't know what good was either. We had to figure it out as we went. Now we can help you."

Emma smiles at the heroic expressions on her parent's faces, yet still can't help her eyes from filling up. She blinks and wipes her eyes with the back of her hand to stop any of the tears from falling. "What should we do? I can't help but keep making bad decisions."

Regina laughs lightly. "Welcome to my life. But don't worry, these two actually have a half decent plan."

"What plan is that?" Emma asks.

"Well…" Snow looks at David. "We realized that the apprentice went missing right after we asked Blue to try and wake him up. She's made it perfectly clear that she doesn't want Merlin coming here, even if it will help you. Plus, nobody's seen her in days."

Emma's shocked. "You think the Blue Fairy did something to the Apprentice?"

"Moved him, or even woke him up and put him in hiding." Says David. "So the plan is to track down Blue and finally get some answers. But until then…"

"Until then what?" Emma asks.

Snow winces. "Well, this is the part you won't like. Even though it's technically your idea."

"Just tell me."

"We have to lock you up. For real this time." Snow says regretfully.

"Wait, what?" Emma asks in surprise.

"Yes, what?!" Regina asks in the same tone as Emma. "We didn't talk about that."

"We don't want to do it either," Snow's tone is one of resolution, "but you told us yourself. You told us to lock you up if you were about to do something stupid. Running away from your home is not a good decision, and even if we talked sense into you right now what's to stop you from doing it in the future?"

"We are." Regina says. "She didn't even try to take that dagger. That's proof she hasn't been lying to us this whole time. She does care still."

"Do I have a say in this?" Emma asks. She looks at Henry, and remembers what he said earlier. She looks back at Snow, resolved. "Do it."

* * *

Thanks for the positive reviews, everybody! Sorry this one is super short, I got excited and wanted to finish it before I went to work. The next one will more than make up for it, I promise. Will update really soon.


	7. Chapter 7

"This is just until we find the Apprentice, right?" Henry asks Snow with concern. He isn't very happy with the thought of locking up one of his moms.

"Of course. Or… until it's safer. Regina, we'll need to use one of the rooms below the hospital." Snow says, obviously ignoring her concerns. "Henry, can I have the dagger back? It's not that I don't trust you with it, but…"

Regina frowns. "I still don't know how you found out about those rooms, but it's fine if you use one."

Henry reaches into his backpack and pulls out the real dagger. He passes it to Snow who places it in her bag. He then grabs Emma's hand and squeezes tightly. Emma smiles at him, and squeezes back. The group walks over to where Snow and Regina had parked their vehicles. Regina slows down.

"Emma, why don't you come with me? I just want to talk to you for a moment before we get to the hospital." Snow makes a disapproving noise, but doesn't try to stop Emma when she lets go of Henry's hand and climbs into the passenger set of Regina's car.

"So what's up?" Emma asks Regina as they pull away from the curb.

"What's up is I'm not letting them just lock you up." Regina turns her car down a street in the opposite direction of the hospital. "That's not the right way to do things. We're going to go hide in the woods, or somewhere… I don't know."

Shock passes through Emma. "But… I thought you'd be on board with this."

"Of course not!" Regina slams her hands on the steering wheel. "You know what the Charming's did to me when I was evil? They tried to lock me up. It didn't work, it just made me angrier. What have I been saying this whole time?"

Emma looks down. "That I need to be with my family."

"Exactly."

"But if they think this is best, I should go along with that, right? The idea is to not create friction between us, to stay connected to what they believe. Regina, I have to do this." She doesn't respond so Emma resolves herself. "Take me there or I'll just go myself."

Regina sighs and stops the car. She backs up into somebody's driveway and turns out into the direction of the hospital. She doesn't say a word for the entirety of the drive. When they pull up to the hospital she silently follows Emma inside, even though everything in her gut is telling her to get her out of there.

Henry greets them at the door and leads them to where David and Mary Margaret are waiting by the locked door to the basement. Regina punches in the key and they all descend, footsteps echoing on the stone steps. She nods to the woman sitting behind the desk, as always, and they make their way into a room.

Emma walks in and turns to Snow. "Okay, do your thing."

Snow pulls out the dagger. "Dark one, I command thee to stay in this room until I say otherwise."

Emma sighs and backs up to the far wall. "All done. Now get busy, you have lots to do."

"You want us to leave already?" Henry asks.

"You have to leave sometime, just hurry and find Blue."

The tension in the room builds until Snow's resolve visibly breaks. "Wait David, what if this isn't the best idea? It sounded right, until I did that. Let's just go home."

Emma twitches towards Snow, a dark thought driving her actions. But instead of paralyzing the whole room with magic as she wants she simply groans and sinks to her knees. "Would you just get out of here already? I'm tempted enough to just take that dagger from your bag and leave and never come back."

"Why?" Snow asks, "Why do you want to leave so badly?"

"I don't know! It's horrible, because I want to do all these terrible things but there is no good reason for any of them. Please, I care about you too much to constantly put you through this torture with me. Just go and figure everything out like you always do."

Snow, David, and Henry shuffle out of the room, their footsteps fade down the hallway, but Regina stays and crosses her arms.

"Well you don't care that much about me, so I'm staying."

"No… Regina. Of course I meant you too." Emma's voice is pinched, "You think after everything we've been through I don't care how you're feeling? I'm going to keep making insane choices as long as I'm the Dark One. Just let me have this one moment of clarity."

Regina crouches so they're at eye level with one another. She grabs Emma's hand so that their fingers lace together, help up between them. Something seems to shift in the atmosphere. "Emma, I…" Regina begins, but Emma cuts her off.

"Go. Now." She pulls away, clutching her hand against her chest and leaning against the wall.

Regina sighs and stands up. "Fine, but I'm coming back the second we find anything."

Emma pointedly doesn't look up as she hears the other woman's footsteps leave the room and the door close.

Seconds later the door bursts open again and Emma looks up in shock.

Regina comes in on a warpath, she paces the room angrily as she talks. "Okay, Swan. You know what? There is no way I'm going to just leave you in here. Your parents might know how to deal with psychopathic villains, but not with people who've just been hurt. If I could pull through, you sure as hell can." She stops and holds out her hand.

With only a little reluctance, Emma takes the hand and lets Regina pull her to her feet. She has to blink a few times to stop tears from welling up. "Why? Why do you keep believing in me?"

Regina sighs. "Because you believed in me."

Emma takes a step closer and finds she doesn't want to let go of Regina's hand. Their eyes lock and confusion courses through her. "Why do I… Do you feel…?" Regina's eyes narrow with the same confusion, and longing of some sort. Longing for safety, or the feeling of being understood. She takes a step closer and the two find themselves just inches apart.

Static courses between them. With a swift motion, Emma leans forward and presses her lips to Regina's.

Somehow, it's not surprising to either of them. It's like a release of pressure. A hidden desire that had been building up for so long and was only now being brought to light. Regina's response is immediate, and instinctual. Her hands immediately rise, where one winds in Emma's long blonde hair and the other grasps the back of her neck to pull her closer.

Emma responds in kind, her hands wrapping around Regina's waist for a brief moment before she unexpectedly gasps and jumps back.

Regina runs her tongue over her lips, blood too hot to feel any surprise at the events. At least until she sees why Emma jumped back.

Emma's skin is shifting, the reptilian patches slowly fade to match the rest of her skin. One of her eyes fades back to its original blue.

"You're… the curse is?"

Emma nods painfully. "It's fading, sort of. It's fighting back, but…" She grabs Regina excitedly. "Kiss me again, it's working!"

Regina pulls back. "But what does this mean? If the curse is lifting then it means… What about Hook? What about Robin?" She blanches. "What about your parents?"

Emma grabs Regina's collar and pulls her into another kiss.

This one is hotter, angrier. Emma pushes Regina up against the stone wall without giving her much say in the matter. She slides her hands from Regina's collar down her arms and holds them against the wall.

Regina is pinned, and can't help but kiss back. Emma's lips are soft and there's something magical and intoxicating in them. Every place hers and Emma's bodies press together tingles, and Regina finds she can almost lose herself in it. Almost. The reality kicks in once again and she tries to draw back. "Emma." She says, muffled by the other woman's lips. She works her hand free from its pinned position and uses it to lightly push Emma away. "Emma. You have to stop. This isn't you right now."

Emma pulls back and the gold slowly fades from her other eye. Something shifts within her and she jumps back in shock, releasing Regina. "Oh, no… No, I'm so sorry." Memories of the past week hit her like a truckload and she nearly falls over. "Oh, Henry. I shouldn't have…" She immediately hunches, guilt making her stomach hurt.

Regina frowns. "Yes, Henry. You did moderately disappointing things. We're going to deal with that, but first, are we going to just ignore what that means for us? Because-" She pauses and winces. "That actually sounds like a pretty good plan."

Emma looks confused. "You think?" Somehow even those two words feel more like the old Emma Swan than anything she'd said over the past week.

"This is way too complicated. We need to deal with what you've been up to, not focus on this or confuse anybody. Even if it does mean that we're tr-…" She pulls herself up short.

Emma nods in agreement. "Yes. I wasn't really in control of what I was doing, and you're mostly happy with Robin, I'm mostly happy with Hook." Her eyes widen. "Oh no, Hook."

"What?"

"I may have convinced him I wanted to run away with him. He's probably been at the docks all night waiting for me."

Regina can't help but let out a condescending laugh. "I bet he has."

Emma panics as she hears footsteps approach the door. "What are we going to tell-"

She's cut off as Snow peeks her head in. "Regina, are you coming?" She gasps as she spots Emma. "What happened?!" She bursts into the room, clearly overjoyed.

Emma's eyes widen as she tries to come up with a decent response. "Uh, I guess…"

Snow's eyes flicker between Emma and Regina slowly. Something dawns upon her and they see the idea take root. Even Regina has nothing to say.

Snow slowly smiles. "I guess it doesn't really matter now, does it? Let's go tell Henry and David the good news."

A river of emotions pass over Emma and she immediately hugs Snow tightly. They step apart and make for the door, Emma trying to focus on being happy for a bit. But her happiness is short lived. As she tries to follow Snow out the doorway, an invisible barrier holds her back. She stumbles backwards into Regina, and immediately rights herself. She can feel redness creeping up her cheeks as they make eye contact. Emma coughs to cover the awkwardness and glares at the doorway. "I guess I'm not totally cured." She says in disappointment.

"Oh, of course." Snow says, "That's what Belle said, right? Anything we can do is only a temporary solution. We still need to find Merlin and get this out of you."

Regina scoffs and struts past Emma into the hall. In the face of the confusing events, she's slipped into her mayor persona to try and regain some control. "What else is new?" She sees David running down the hall towards them. "Look, here he comes with more good news, I bet."

David comes to a shaky stop next to his wife. "It's Blue. We found blue." He says breathlessly.

"You did?" Emma asks from just beyond the threshold of the cell.

David jumps back at seeing Emma returned to normal. "Emma?"

"The events are unclear," Snow says, answering his question before he even has a chance to ask it. She pulls the dagger from her bag. "Plus, they're unimportant right now. What matters is that we make sure she stays like this. Where's Blue? Also, you can leave the cell, Emma." She waves the dagger and Emma steps free of the room.

"She's at the convent. The other fairies are taking care of her. I still don't know what happened so we should get over there pretty fast."

"Do you guys mind if I meet you there?" Emma asks. "I have to go talk to Hook about something."

David places a comforting hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Of course. Take your time, we can deal with this by ourselves if we have to."

Emma is about to run down the hall, but hesitates. "Maybe I should talk to Henry first."

"No, Henry went to the convent as soon as we heard the news. There was no stopping him. You can deal with that when you get back from Hook."

Emma nods and casts one last confused look at Regina before a cloud of white magic surrounds her and she's gone.

* * *

Man, it's getting harder to write this as we get more and more clues about the next season. The urge to immediately make Emma start dressing in black leather is overwhelming.

Sorry about the wait for this one, I'm not the greatest at writing consistently.


	8. Chapter 8

Emma parks her bug and climbs out. After she teleported herself to the car she promised herself she wouldn't use magic to get around after that. It's much too addicting. She makes her way down the dock, focusing on every step to stop herself from thinking about the small amount of darkness still in her. She can feel it waiting. Waiting for her to misstep like she did before so it can take over. She sees Hook standing by a pile of ropes and other nautical things that she should probably know the names of by now. The Jolly Roger is anchored a bit further out. He looks up as he hears her coming and joy spreads across his face. He drops the rope he was holding and runs up.

"Emma! You go the darkness to go away." His eyes track over her face. "How did you manage that?"

Emma sighs, realizing she should have decided what she was going to tell him before she got there. "It's a long story. Sort of. Actually, it's pretty short, but it's going to be hard to explain." Emma's distraught. Hook steps closer and places a hand to the side of her face. She looks at the hard earned love in his eyes and realizes she can't destroy it. He comes up with the most obvious lie. "It was my light magic. It must have healed me. For the most part at least."

Hook lifts his thumb from her jaw and nods in agreement. "I see what you mean. There's a little something still here."

"What?" Emma pulls away and backs up a few steps. She reaches to her jaw and feels a small patch of leathery skin. "That wasn't there earlier." A terrible thought occurs to her. Was it back because she just lied to Hook? If so, then the only way to make it go away again would be to tell him the truth. How would she explain that she had kissed Regina? How could she explain how much it had meant to her? To finally break through the barrier that had been between them since they met and realize just how close they were meant to be… there's no way to explain that to somebody you're dating.

"So are we leaving?" Hook asks, breaking Emma out of her reverie.

She narrows her eyes, confused. "Are you serious? What are you talking about?"

"Leaving the town. Like you said."

"No! Are you kidding me? I was not myself when I said that. We would never be able to come back! My entire life is here." Emma shakes her head, a little disappointed that she had been so easily influenced by the darkness and a lot disappointed that Hook had gone along with it. "Let's just… I don't know. I'm going to go help deal with the latest drama at the convent. You bring your ship back to dock."

She walks away leaving Hook wondering what just happened.

Regina is sitting on an uneven plastic chair by the most uncomfortable makeshift bed she's seen. A small group of fairies surround her as she slowly raises a hand and begins healing the many cuts and bruises on the woman lying in front of her. Snow and David are there, of course. Over the past week they've been following her like they have nothing better to do. Henry sits off to the side of the room, still scrutinizing every detail of the storybook.

The healing is slow work and a few times she pauses to glance up at the useless group. "Remind me again why you couldn't just do this yourselves?"

One of the fairies pipes up. "We're not very practiced in wandless magic. We could have made a potion, or a rune of some sort that would have helped, but nothing as fast and effective as your magic; dark as it is."

Regina grumbles, surprised that she almost wishes blue were awake and not passed out in front of her. Annoying and self-righteous as she may be, she at least makes sure the fairies have direction. She fixes the last bruise, a deep one that extends to the bone, and stands up. "That should be it. Now we just have to wake her up." She makes a gesture with her thumb and pointer finger and a small spurt of magic flies into Blue's face, waking her instantly.

She bolts upright, hand raised in a defensive position. She pauses and takes in her location. "Regina, you helped me?" She asks.

Regina nods. "Now do you want to tell us what happened?"

Blue sighs, defeated. "It started when I went to check on him." She looks like she's about to continue, but something behind Regina catches her attention. Her eyes widen in surprise and she falls into a shocked silence.

Regina turns and sees Emma standing in the doorway, looking slightly unsure of herself. Regina's eyes immediately fall on the patch of reptilian like skin that has newly appeared on her jaw.

"Emma, you go it to fade back again." Blue remarks. "How did this happen?"

David steps in. "We aren't sure, but if I had to guess it has something to do with her saviour magic, right?"

Snow grabs his arm. "Actually, David, can I talk to you for a moment?" She glances at Regina with a look on her face that's almost an apology, but she can never keep things from her husband. He looks at her, confused, but obliges when she pulls him out into the hallway.

Emma ignores Blue's questioning look, and makes a beeline through the fairies straight to Henry. It looks like it's taking every ounce of his will not to leap across the room to her. She crouches by the chair he's sitting in.

"Henry, I am so sorry." A million other thoughts and apologies race through her mind, but before she can voice any of them, Henry nods.

"It's okay. I know it wasn't really you." He lifts a hand as if he's about to touch her face but drops it. "How did you break the curse?"

"It doesn't really matter. But it isn't totally broken, it might come back."

Henry frowns and looks back at the book. "Okay." He turns the page. "Go do what you have to do. I'll be here."

Emma winces and stands. She can't help but think that as mad as henry is now, it would be much worse if she told the truth. She makes her way to the small group. Most of the fairies have already trickled out of the room, but a few remain talking amongst themselves off to the side.

Blue looks between Emma and Regina and raises her eyebrows. "So that happened, then?"

Regina crosses her arms. "Stop stalling and tell us about the apprentice."

"Well, I went to try and wake him up but he was already awake when I arrived. He was going through the things in the shop, and must have found whatever he was looking for. When he saw me he grabbed whatever it was in a fairly large bundle and tried to transport himself away. I managed to grab his arm to try and follow him, but whatever spell he was casting wasn't simply a teleporting spell. He was trying to travel through dimensions. I got thrown around pretty violently before I finally let go, ending up in the woods."

"So you have no idea where he is?" Regina asks.

"I'm sorry, no. But if I had to guess he's gone to go get Merlin."

"So we just have to wait for him to come to us. Guess that works." Emma says.

Snow and David enter the room again, and Blue sighs as she realizes she has to retell the story. Regina grabs Emma's arm and pulls her to the side.

"Emma, can I talk to you for a moment?" Regina nods her head in the direction of the hallway. "Alone?"

Emma hesitates, looking back to Henry and her parents, but obliges when she sees the look on the other woman's face. She follows Regina into the hall. "What's up?" She asks.

Regina crosses her arms and looks to the side. "I just… I wanted to apologize."

Emma's shocked. "Apologize? For what?" She can't think of a single thing Regina has done wrong.

"For… I mean, I should have…" Regina frowns and recomposes. "Right after this all happened, you said you would find me if you were feeling overwhelmed by the darkness. When you made your way to my house and invited me out for drinks I thought you were off, but I should have realized it was a call for help. So I'm sorry."

"Regina, that's okay. It's not like I was rampaging through the streets murdering people. Just one. I guess I'll have to live with that, but at least it's over now, right?"

Regina furrows her eyebrows and reaches up to touch a finger to the tip of Emma's nose. "Not for long it seems. The darkness is coming back. What did you do?"

Emma pulls away from Regina's touch. "I blew off Henry. I didn't realize that qualified as darkness now, but whatever."

"No, not 'whatever'. What are you going to do about that if it gets worse like it did before?"

Emma snorts. "I think we both know the most obvious answer."

"I thought we agreed not to talk about that."

"Okay, but what about Henry? Should I lie to him then?"

"No!" Regina rubs her temples, feeling a headache forming. "Just… Okay, let's go to my house and we can talk."

Emma nods. "Just give me a bit. I have to ask Blue about a few things. I'll meet you there."

Regina nods and allows Emma to walk away despite her better instincts telling her to stop her.

Emma walks into the room to find it empty apart from Blue. She has sat back down on the bed and is about to lay down to rest some more and it seems everybody else has given her some space. Emma narrows her eyes and strides up.

"You lied earlier."

"What?" Blue's head whips around to face Emma.

"You lied when you were talking to us. I don't know what about, but the whole story stinks. What's the truth?"

Blue shakes her head. "I don't know what you're talking about. But I need some rest, so if you wouldn't mind?" She lays down and turns her back.

"Hey! I'm talking to you." Emma grabs Blue by the shoulder and pulls her up off the bed. The fairy glances at the look in her eyes and immediately disappears in a cloud of blue smoke to the other side of the room. Her hands raise in a defensive position.

"Emma, calm down. I didn't lie to you."

"There's one thing that never fails me, and it's my lie detector. So you're going to tell me the truth. Now." A small amount of magic bursts from Emma's hand unbidden and strikes the wall near Blue. Emma winces. "Sorry, I didn't do that on purpose."

"I know you didn't do it on purpose, and that's why you should leave before you get any more agitated."

"I can't just leave if you're keeping something from me that could help."

"Nothing I can say will help you. Even the marks on your skin are getting worse by the second as you continue to threaten me."

Emma can feel it. She marches across the room until she's standing only a short distance from the fairy. "I'm coming back."

Blue watches her go warily.

Emma feels queasy by the time her bug pulls up at Regina's. The darkness wants to return much more quickly than it came the first time. She walks up to the door and rings the bell. Her hands are shaking at the return of the dark magic. She rings two more times in rapid succession before Regina pulls open the door.

"Emma, are you okay? You look horrible."

Emma walks past her into the house. "I don't know, I…" Her head twitches and she groans as a large patch of her face shifts to reflect the darkness growing inside her. "I need you to kiss me. Like… now."

Regina closes the door. "I can't just do that! Henry's here, I wanted you to talk out your problems with him."

Emma completely ignores her and lunges forward, taking her by surprise. By the time Regina breaks the kiss, the darkness is already fading.

The intensity of her actions come to her and Emma blushes bright red and ducks her head. "Sorry, I should… Go." She rushes towards the door without another word.

Regina calls out. "Wait, Emma. This isn't the way to-" The door shuts and she sighs, exasperated. "-solve things."

She turns and walks into the kitchen where Henry is sitting at the table with the dinner Regina had prepared for him. "Was that my mom? What did she want?" He asks.

Regina sighs again. She can't say anything now, without Emma to help. "Nothing, Henry."


End file.
